We hear it all the time: having cosmetic surgery won’t make you feel better about yourself. And yet we all have friends who feel differently, who love the changes surgery has made to their appearance and who are supportive of others’ decision to do the same.

Time for a Change of Perspective

It’s one thing hearing anecdotal evidence, but there’s nothing like hard scientific fact to back up the claims. And statistically, the results should support the popular belief. But in fact, recent research supports the notion that cosmetic surgery boosts self-esteem.

Researchers from the universities of Basel and Ruhr conducted in-depth studies on almost 2000 subjects, concentrating on three different groups of people ): a group having a cosmetic procedure, a group considering surgery but deciding not to go ahead and a group with no interest in cosmetic surgery. They used a questionnaire and established that the self-esteem of the group considering cosmetic procedures and the group not interested in cosmetic procedures were largely unchanged. However, the group who underwent a procedure reported increased feelings of self-esteem.

The Fine Print

So does this mean that cosmetic surgery should be seen as a cure for low self-esteem? Not quite. The researchers were keen to gauge the hopes of the cosmetic surgery group against the later results, and they included questions regarding their expectations. Unsurprisingly, those with the highest and most unrealistic expectations experienced the lowest boost to self-esteem ). This group accounted for around 12% of the surgery group, and their answers reflected beliefs that surgery would change their life. Some respondents agreed with the statement that surgery would make them a ‘completely new person’.

Realistic Expectations

Time and time again we hear how important it is to have realistic expectations, and when visiting a cosmetic surgeon in Cambridge such as the team at www.cosmeticsurgeoncambridge.co.uk/, it’s important to be able to take the time to fully discuss your expectations for the results of the procedure and how you’ll feel about yourself afterwards.

In the end, the best way to guarantee you’ll be happy with the result of your procedure is to ensure you visit a professional with proven expertise and an excellent local reputation – someone who will be able to understand your wants and needs.